Birds

By -
Gretchen has this thing for birds. And fish, it seems. Possibly for tiny little dogs, as well, although this is a somewhat recent addition to her list of animals she wants in our not-so-very-big home.

When we got married, she had a bunch of bettas. The bettas were awesome, and really good sports about being used as centerpieces during our wedding reception. Shortly after we got married, Gretch got a lovebird, named it Maren, and she, the bird, took her place as queen of the living room. (The bettas, incidentally, are mostly on the counter that separates kitchen and living room.)

Before getting married, she'd had a ridiculously stupid cockatiel named Jackie. (Or something like that. I still don't know how she spells this bird's name. Sad, I know.) Anyway, this cockatiel, along with being the dumbest bird alive, hates every male in the world, with the exception of Gretch's little brother. This bird had been given away, much to my delight. Then he came back and I was not happy, but I came to accept the fact that this bird would torment me and he and I are now on, if not pleasant, at least tolerable terms, although he does hiss at me on occasion.

Then Gretch's mum got a parrot that she wanted us to take in. I refused. We don't have room for any more animals in our house. Some of the fish have died, but that doesn't make room for more birds. Then Gretch's mum wanted us to take in her lovebird and "train" her. I begged Gretchen not to do this. About two weeks ago, I came home, was doing some things, and noticed that there were not one, but two lovebirds on the cages. This made me less than pleased. Gretchen promised this bird, named Belinda, would only be here a short while.

Now, I want her gone, and I want her gone now. She has somehow managed to discover that she can hop up the stairs, go into the office, and get inside the printer. Not only did she get inside the printer, she ate it. Well, okay, only parts of it. But still! Maren has followed her example, and today I had to spend half an hour wear a leather glove and pulling these birds out of my printer. They are now locked up in their cage and will remain so until Belinda is gone.

I like Maren. She's funny. Jackie has his moments. Belinda, though, is another story. She ate my printer. And now we have to go get a new one.

Comments

Cherry and Noah said…
It's a funny story, though sad in its own way. We're having our own challenges trying to potty train Zorro, but its getting better. Good luck with the bird thing!
October 26, 2009 at 3:15 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Who Am I? On Iconography, Faith, and Self-Identity

By -
Image
In one of the great classic works of French literature, the author Victor Hugo tells the story of Jean Valjean, a man who spent nineteen years in prison, growing angrier and more filled with hate toward the world with each passing day. The first five years were for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his sister’s starving family, but then he suffered for fourteen additional years for attempting to run away. The story of Les Misérables follows his journey from his release from prison on parole to a life of service, sacrifice, love, mercy, grace, and, ultimately, redemption. In the musical adaptation of this story, a pivotal moment takes place early in the story when Jean Valjean, who had been gifted a meal and safe shelter for the night from a kindly bishop, gives in to temptation, steals the bishop’s silverware and runs off, only to be captured by the local constables. Valjean claims that the silver was given as a gift from the bishop but the police, not believing the words of a cri...
Read more

Make A Joyful Noise

By -
My father-in-law recently blogged about music, and lamented that Western society does not produce music except for the purpose of providing entertaining diversions. While I am sorely tempted to link to his blog, I will refrain. Rather, I wish to simply present my own thoughts on why I consume music. And consume it I do. I love music. I devour it. It is a part of my being. Gretch and I almost always have music playing in our home, in the car, and when we are working (and can get away with it). I do not know when my love of music first emerged, but I would argue that it has always been with me. My own father is a talented musician, although I fear there are times when this talent has been hidden from the world. Yet some of my earliest recollections of my childhood include Dad breaking out his amazingly awesome Martin D35 acoustic guitar and playing songs like "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by The Tokens, "Boogie" by John Hartford, and various songs from the world of classi...
Read more

Who Are You?

By -
A thought has been running through my mind this morning and it doesn't seem to be planning on leaving any time soon. I have things I need to get done (such as applying for more jobs for the coming school year), so I am hoping that this may help me at least share the thought well enough that I can worry about other things. The thought is really more of a question. Who am I? Who are you? How do I define myself? How do you define yourself? So often in our lives, we have opportunities to introduce ourselves to new people. I've mentioned before how I have this habit of introducing myself as Alex Valencic but, if I am writing my name, it is always Alex T. Valencic. After sharing my name, it is inevitable that someone will want to know more about me, and the first thing they ask is what I do. How we respond to this question says a lot about what we think of ourselves, I think. When someone asks me what I do, I respond by either saying I am a teacher or I am a professional educat...
Read more